1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to LEDs (light-emitting diodes), and more particularly, to an LED capable of being mounted to a component such as a circuit board in either of two selectable orientations.
2. Description of Related Art
Even as a relatively new type of light source, LEDs are now widely used in various applications. A conventional LED includes a base defining a cavity therein, a pair of electrodes fixed in the base, a light emitting chip received in the cavity to electrically connect the two electrodes, and an encapsulant filling the cavity to seal the chip. Generally, each of the two electrodes has a protruding end exposed at a bottom of the base.
However, because the two electrodes are exposed only at the bottom of the base, the LED is limited to being mounted on a circuit board in only a single orientation, namely, bottom side down. That is, the LED is vertically mounted on the circuit board, and a light output direction of the LED is thus typically limited to being perpendicular to the circuit board.
What is needed, therefore, is an LED which can overcome the limitations described above.